CERN httpd
Encyclopedia
CERN httpd was a web server
(HTTP) daemon
originally developed at CERN
from 1990 onwards by Tim Berners-Lee
, Ari Luotonen and Henrik Frystyk Nielsen
. Implemented in C, it was the first ever web server software and went live on Christmas Day 1990.
CERN httpd was originally developed on a NeXT Computer
running NeXTSTEP
, and was later ported to other Unix-like
operating system
s and OpenVMS
. It could also be configured as a web proxy server
.
Version 0.1 was released in June 1991.
In August 1991, Berners-Lee announced in the Usenet newsgroup alt.hypertext the availability of the source code
of the server daemon and other World Wide Web
software from the CERN FTP site.
The server was presented on the Hypertext 91 conference in San Antonio and was part of the CERN Program Library
(CERNLIB).
Later versions of the server are based on the libwww
library. The development of CERN httpd was later taken over by W3C, with the last release being version 3.0A of 15 July 1996. From 1996 onwards, W3C focused on the development of the Java
-based Jigsaw
server.
Web server
Web server can refer to either the hardware or the software that helps to deliver content that can be accessed through the Internet....
(HTTP) daemon
Daemon (computing)
In Unix and other multitasking computer operating systems, a daemon is a computer program that runs as a background process, rather than being under the direct control of an interactive user...
originally developed at CERN
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
from 1990 onwards by Tim Berners-Lee
Tim Berners-Lee
Sir Timothy John "Tim" Berners-Lee, , also known as "TimBL", is a British computer scientist, MIT professor and the inventor of the World Wide Web...
, Ari Luotonen and Henrik Frystyk Nielsen
Henrik Frystyk Nielsen
Henrik Frystyk Nielsen is a Danish engineer and computer scientist. He is best known for his pioneering work on the World Wide Web and subsequent work on computer network protocols.-Biography:...
. Implemented in C, it was the first ever web server software and went live on Christmas Day 1990.
History
NeXT Computer
The NeXT Computer was a high-end workstation computer developed, manufactured and sold by Steve Jobs' company NeXT from 1988 until 1990. It ran the Unix-based NeXTSTEP operating system. The NeXT Computer was packaged in a 1-foot die-cast magnesium cube-shaped case, which led to the machine being...
running NeXTSTEP
NEXTSTEP
NeXTSTEP was the object-oriented, multitasking operating system developed by NeXT Computer to run on its range of proprietary workstation computers, such as the NeXTcube...
, and was later ported to other Unix-like
Unix-like
A Unix-like operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, while not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification....
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s and OpenVMS
OpenVMS
OpenVMS , previously known as VAX-11/VMS, VAX/VMS or VMS, is a computer server operating system that runs on VAX, Alpha and Itanium-based families of computers. Contrary to what its name suggests, OpenVMS is not open source software; however, the source listings are available for purchase...
. It could also be configured as a web proxy server
Proxy server
In computer networks, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary for requests from clients seeking resources from other servers. A client connects to the proxy server, requesting some service, such as a file, connection, web page, or other resource available from a different server...
.
Version 0.1 was released in June 1991.
In August 1991, Berners-Lee announced in the Usenet newsgroup alt.hypertext the availability of the source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
of the server daemon and other World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
software from the CERN FTP site.
The server was presented on the Hypertext 91 conference in San Antonio and was part of the CERN Program Library
CERN Program Library
The CERN Program Library or CERNLIB is a collection of FORTRAN77 libraries and modules, maintained "as is" by CERN. Its content ranges from more specialized data analysis of high energy physics to general purpose numerical analysis...
(CERNLIB).
Later versions of the server are based on the libwww
Libwww
libwww is a highly-modular client-side web API for Unix and Windows, and is also the name of the reference implementation of this API....
library. The development of CERN httpd was later taken over by W3C, with the last release being version 3.0A of 15 July 1996. From 1996 onwards, W3C focused on the development of the Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
-based Jigsaw
Jigsaw (server)
Jigsaw is an Open Source Web Server platform from the W3C. The latest version, as of 2011, was released in 2007....
server.
See also
- Comparison of web server softwareComparison of web server software-Overview:-Features:- Operating system support :...
- Traffic ServerTraffic ServerThe Apache Traffic Server is a modular, high-performance reverse proxy and forward proxy server, generally comparable to Nginx and Squid. It was created by Inktomi, and distributed as a commercial product called the Inktomi Traffic Server, before Inktomi was acquired by Yahoo!...
- Web acceleratorWeb acceleratorA web accelerator is a proxy server that reduces web site access times. They can be a self-contained hardware appliance or installable software....
which discusses host-based HTTP acceleration - Proxy serverProxy serverIn computer networks, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary for requests from clients seeking resources from other servers. A client connects to the proxy server, requesting some service, such as a file, connection, web page, or other resource available from a different server...
which discusses client-side proxies - Reverse proxyReverse proxyIn computer networks, a reverse proxy is a type of proxy server that retrieves resources on behalf of a client from one or more servers. These resources are then returned to the client as though it originated from the reverse proxy itself...
which discusses origin-side proxies